Good sleep, exercise can cut stroke risk

New York, Feb 19 (IANS) Getting the right amount of sleep and exercising several times a week can significantly cut the risk of stroke, suggests a study.

The researchers from the New York University found that an average sleep of seven to eight hours and vigorous leisurely activity or exercise of 30 to 60 minutes three to six times per week, are healthy behaviours that can significantly decreased adults’ stroke risk.

But sleeping for a longer or shorter amount of time increased the risk people would suffer, they said.

The result showed that average sleepers — those who slept seven to eight hours a night — were 25 percent less likely to have experienced a stroke.

Meanwhile long sleepers — those who got more than eight hours a night — were 146 percent more likely to have suffered a stroke.

And short sleepers, who slept less than seven hours a night, were 22 percent more likely to report having had a stroke.

Average sleep and vigorous leisurely activity three to six times per week significantly decreased stroke risk, the researchers elucidated.

Researchers used a computerised analysis of health, lifestyle, demographic and other factors in 288,888 adults who were 77 percent white and nearly half 45 or older who participated in a survey from 2004 to 2013.

They examined how long, average and short sleep durations and physical activity, such as walking, swimming, bicycling, gardening and more, impact stroke risk.

The research was presented at the American Stroke Association’s International Stroke Conference 2016 held in US.